"Quartier Schützenstrasse" consists of a classical
Friedrichstadt block defined by the Schützenstrasse,
Markgrafenstrasse, Zimmerstrasse, and
Charlottenstrasse.

Aldo Rossi's used the historical urban structure of the division
of land into small plots as his concept for Quartier
Schützenstrasse.

Photo: arcspace

The individualized houses signal individual plots but the total
number of facades exceeds the number of houses standing
independently of each other. While two of the buildings are
reserved exclusively for residential apartments the rest provide
for a mixture of residential and commercial use.
Photo: arcspace

Photo: arcspace

The Quartier Schützenstrasse is a collage of icons and
archetypes with several obvious references to other Rossi buildings
as well as historical references.

Photo: arcspace

Schützenstrasse 8 is a copy of the courtyard facade of the
Palazzo Farnese in Rome, built in 1516 by Antonio Sangallo, that
was modified by Michelangelo. The court yard facade copies three of
the centre line of windows of the Palazzo Farnese.

Photo:
arcspace

Photo:
arcspace

The plan, inspired by the building blocks of 19th century
Berlin, is organized around two large and two small interior
courtyards that fill the block with light.

Photo:
arcspace

Photo:
arcspace

Photo: arcspace

The path through the smallest, ornamental courtyard behind the
Palazzo Farnese.
The intense colorfulness, inspired by the colors of antique
architecture, tie the block together and draws attention to the
allotment structure, which distinguishes the individual houses.
Rossi used particular colors for particular facade materials; the
more "artificial" the material, the more "vivid" the color.

The urge towards a multiplicity of forms is
unmistakable, the efforts beyond variations in color and material
impressive. The varying window shapes, the appointment of the
attics, the plastic development of the facades through extroverted
and reticent sections, through sills and parapet; the sometimes
expressly horizontal, other times explicitly vertical division of
the mostly axial-symmetric facades; and finally their own, lightly
staggered order all contribute to this effect.

The great pains Rossi took with the design of his
city-within-a-city were only initially devoted to the plausibility
of its lots structure. Rather, the "city" was mainly dedicated to
what he called a monument, so that it may have sovereignty over its
use, just as it is sovereign over its environment./ Mathias Remmele

Aldo Rossi died on September 4, 1997; a day before the unveiling
of the "Palazzo Farnese" facade. Planned as an event to honor
Rossi, it became a farewell address.